Long history with BFG
Dahl, a former Repton schoolboy, wrote The BFG in 1982 and about 37 million copies have been sold.
David Wood's stage adaptation has been around for nearly two decades and is back on tour this year, calling in at Nottingham's Theatre Royal this week.
Wherever it goes, Anthony plays the title role and, at other times, is performing a compilation of the great man's work called a Taste of Dahl.
"I have performed the one-man show in the Roald Dahl Museum and had question-and-answer sessions, and have been asked questions by people who knew him," says Anthony.
"In order to put a compilation like that together, which is also directed by David Wood, I had to read everything he wrote and found out a lot about the guy.
"He died in November 1990 and we started the BFG in April 1991.
"I hope he would have liked it... but he was a bit grumpy about adaptations of his work!
"There has been an animated film of the BFG, which I think he would have hated. He wasn't keen on the movie versions of his work. Take Willy Wonka: he didn't want Gene Wilder playing the part, he wanted Spike Milligan.
" In the film of The Witches they changed it to a happy ending because the Americans couldn't cope.
"Since he died, David had adapted many of Road Dahl's books for the stage and, hopefully, he would have been happy."
Antony will be touring with the show for most of the rest of the year, adding to those 1,600 performances with three more a day.
"Some people thought I was mad to come back to it, putting my body through all that leaping around again," he says. "I hurt my back this week and had to have a back massage before the show.
"But it's so rewarding and for most of the children it's their first piece of theatre, and it's so exciting to think you can have that effect on children. hearing them cheering.
"When I'm doing my one-man show to 150 kids I can see their faces. I see them wide-eyed and listening, that's the most important thing. That's your job as an actor."
Can Anthony put his finger on how the writer wove his magic?
"He used to say that he used to think like a child."
Does Anthony think there's a lot of the author's personality in The BFG?
"He was anything between 6ft 4in and 6ft 6in, as he was a bit shorter when he was older," he says. "But apparently he had a garden handyman called Wally Saunders who worked for him for years, with big feet and big hands, and The BFG was created around him. But obviously there are aspects of Dahl."
THE BFG
WHERE: Theatre Royal, Nottingham
WHEN: July 7-11
TICKETS: £12.50- £17.50
BOX OFFICE: 0115 989 5555
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